Well, Saturday morning Dalton and I could not get birds to act interested even while on the roost. Sunday morning, they responded hot and heavy from the roost and the five gobblers that I had gobbling all came to the call within an hour of 1st light that morning.

Dalton was just a little quick on the trigger, he thought I said shoot when I really said wait or he would have had his bird by now. He was really upset but I told him that this is a learning experience and turkey hunting is tough, don't worry about it and we'll get his bird during the regular season.

The last three years have been tough in my area. When the gals get their man it is tough to get his attention. I had to swith to ambush tactics. I would love to see the season a at least a week earlier. Two weeks would even be better in my opinion.

I no longer turkey hunt, beacuse the season opens so late (to-late) for me to waste $$ on a tag. The only luck I ever had was on opening morning (which means burning a vacation day) and getting to the birds before the knuckle head in blue jeans and white t-shirt ran them off.

I still believe turkey season should open the first monday of April. The weather was the main factor on the youth hunt. The toms are henned up during this transition but you have to know how to hunt them when they are. That's by calling aggressively (which I like to do) and trying to sound like many hens or a fight. You have to do a lot of leg work to sometimes find a tom that is willing to pull out of the group, a single lonely tom, or a hen who will bring the group to you. All of that is do-able and in my opinion is working a bird. This week and next, the birds will break up more and spread out. Instead of hearing 5-6 gobbles on the same ridge, they will be more scatterred and less likely to have a hen with them. These next 2 weeks will be the best hunting days in my opinion. By opening day, most of the breeding will be done and the toms know it. Very few hens will be calling to toms and the toms know it. Toms might answer a call but most will do only that, answer. Most of the toms will expect the remaining hens that are looking to breed to come to them. Deer hunting ambush tactics will be the main way to kill a bird in the 2nd and 3rd week of this year's season and to me, that aint working a bird. You will have to be where that tom is planning to be before he is and coax him over with a few clucks and purrs. There will be very little gobbling or strutting. That's not turkey hunting in my book. That's about how this season will play out in my opinion in the southern part of the state. I suspect the birds will be about a week or so behind in the northern half of the state. We should be out there chasing them right now.

After blanking out the last two seasons, ambush tactics are the only way to go as far as I'm concerned, I know where ones gonna be, he was there two weeks ago when I was up on the farm, he was there last year, so I know exactly where to get him. I don't even plan to call to him.